LOT Polish Airlines (LO/LOT) has announced a new route between its main hub, Warsaw, and the United States capital city, Washington DC. This will be the airline’s second new route to the United States for the summer of 2020, following a recent announcement for a San Francisco service.
The new route will operate three times per week, on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. The outbound flight, LO39, will depart Warsaw at 16:50 and arrive in Washington at 20:30 the same evening. The return, LO40, will depart the United States capital at 22:25 and arrive back in Poland at 13:25 the following afternoon. The route will be operated by a mix of Boeing 787-8 and 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft.
LOT’s long-haul fleet currently consists of 15 787s, with a further two 787-9s on order for future expansion. LOT has used the 787 to replace its older Boeing 767 fleet and has also expanded significantly with the new aircraft, adding several new long-haul routes, including several flights from Budapest. The airline’s 787 cabins are similar to those of many other airlines, including Kenya Airways and Azerbaijan Airlines. The airline’s business class features lie-flat beds in a 2-2-2 configuration, while economy features standard seats in a 3-3-3 configuration. All seats include in-flight entertainment systems. The aircraft also include a small premium economy cabin, with wider seats featuring extra legroom arranged in a 2-3-2 configuration.
Washington will be LOT’s seventh route to the United States from Warsaw, after Chicago, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami and Newark. The airline also flies to the United States from secondary destinations in Eastern Europe, with flights from Budapest to New York, Krakow to Chicago and New York and Rzeszow to Newark. LOT is the final European Star Alliance carrier to add flights to Washington Dulles, a United Airlines hub offering plenty of connectivity throughout North America.